Working Parents: Tips for Taking Care of a Sick Child

If you’re a working parent, you’re probably used to the chaos of getting the kids to school on time so you can get to work on time. Like many other parents, you probably make it there by the skin of your teeth every day, but what happens when your child wakes up and tells you they’re ill? It throws a whole new spanner in the works and suddenly you’re panicking about taking care of your child, getting that important presentation finished and submitted on time and sorting out the other members of the family too. Here’s how you can do it all.

Bite the Bullet

The last thing you want to do when your child is sick is send him to school. Firstly, that will often make him feel worse and make the illness last longer than necessary. The best environment for a sick child is his own home. So, unless you’ve got a very gracious family member who can stay at home with your child, it means taking the day off work. It may be the last thing you want to do but mostparents are entitled to take a certain number of days off per year unpaid to look after their children. The more time you devote to getting your child well, the quicker the recovery will be.

Work from Home

More and more people are telecommuting for work these days. It’s adds more flexibility to schedules and ensures work isn’t missed when a situation like this arises. If you have the option of working from home, you may be able to look after your child and work simultaneously. Wrap your child up inWinter warm duvets and put on a favourite movie. That way, you can get some work done in peace and quiet, while your child rests and recuperates.

Always Have a Plan B

It isn’t often easy tofind childcare you can trust and rely on. Every parent should have someone they can call on when there’s no other choice. Children often end up picking up illnesses that last a lot longer than a day. In some cases, once your child has had some time at home, he may start to feel better but not well enough to go back to school. Having a child minder who can care for him in the same way as you will make it easier for you to go back to work.

Tag Team

If both parents work full-time jobs, it can be difficult to decide who stays at home and who goes to work. You may get a better reaction from your employers if you tag team the situation. One parent stays at home in the morning, one parent come back home for the afternoon. That way, you can both get some work done and the child has the best possible care at home all day.

It isn’t easy to be a parent and juggle all of your responsibilities, but it’s much harder when you have a sick child. So, make sure you have some contingency plans in place.